Black God, White Devil

Black God, White Devil ( Portuguese : Deus eo Diabo na Terra do Sol , literally, God and the Devil in the Land of the Sun ) is a 1964 Brazilian movie directed and written byGlauber Rocha . The film stars Othon Bastos , Maurício do Valle , Yoná Magalhães , and Geraldo Del Rey . It belongs to the Cinema Novo movement, addressing the socio-political problems of 1960s Brazil. The film was released on DVD in North America by Koch-Lorber Films .

Plot

The movie starts in the 1940s, During Reviews another drought in the sertão , When ranch hand Manuel (Geraldo Del Rey) is fed up with His situation. His boss tries to cheat him of his earnings and Manuel kills him, fleeing with his wife, Rosa (Yoná Magalhães). Now an outlaw, a manual joins up with a self-proclaimed saint who condones violence (at one point slaughtering a baby) and preaches disturbing doctrines. It’s now Rosa who turns to death and the two are on the move once again. And so it goes, the two running from one allegiance to another, following the words of others in their position in their ruthless land. Blending mysticism , religion , and popular culture In this symbolic and realistic drama, Rocha insists that rather than following the external and obscure dogmas of culture and religion,

Cast

Geraldo Del Rey as Manuel

Yoná Magalhães as Rosa

Othon Bastos as Corisco

Maurício do Valle as Antonio das Mortes

Lidio Silva as Sebastião

Sonia Dos Humildes as Dadá

João Gama as Priest

Antônio Pinto as Colonel

Milton Rosa as Moraes (as Milton Roda)

Roque Santos as (as Roque)

Production

Glauber Rocha was 25 years old when he wrote and began to direct the film.

Its filming took place on Monte Santo and Canudos , Bahia lasting from June 18, 1963 to September 2, 1963. [1] [2]

In the scene where we see Manuel (Geraldo Del Rey) carrying a huge stone over his head while climbing Monte Santo on his knees, Del Rey insisted on carrying a real stone that weighted over 20 kilos – something that worried Rocha. After the shooting, Del Rey had to take 2 days off, due to fatigue. [ quote needed ]

During the dubbing, Othon Bastos performed three voices. Besides dubbing himself as Corisco , he performed the voice for Lampião (whom Corisco had “incorporated”) and also dubbed Sebastião, the black God, even though Lídio Silva played the character on screen. [ quote needed ]

Reception

Critical reception

Film review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 100%, based on 11 reviews , with a rating average of 8.5 / 10. [3]

Awards

The film was nominated for the Palme d’Or at the 1964 Cannes Film Festival , but failed to win. [4] It was also selected as the Best Foreign Language Film at the 37th Academy Awards , but was not accepted as a nominee. [5] In 2015 it was voted number 2 on the Abraccine Top 100 Brazilian films list.

See also

List of submissions for the 37th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film

List of Brazilian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film